A New Jersey democrat is using her political muscle to force citizens across the state to register their bicycles with the Division of Motor Vehicles. The ridiculous maneuver would help the state offset its $10 billion budget deficit by enforcing a $10 per license plate fee and fines up to $100 for those, including children, caught riding unregistered bikes.

Assemblywoman Cleopatra Tucker (D-Essex) said balancing the state’s budget isn’t her motivation for the outlandish proposal; it’s protecting senior citizens from getting run over by kids on bikes.

Affixing license plates to every bicycle in the state would help these vulnerable senior citizens identify and rattle off the license plate numbers from the kids’ bikes to the police, ensuring the rascals are brought to justice, says Tucker.

Tucker’s proposal has been met with opposition by a diverse group of interests including bicyclists, environmentalists, business owners and even her own colleagues in the State House.

“That’s an outrage, for sure,” said Paige Hiemier, vice-president of the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition. “Basically, it’s outrageous for a number of reasons, and most of them are: Who is the legislation aimed at? Who’s going to administer it? How are they going to pay for it? Who’s going to stop the bicyclists and check their registration?”

An effort to cut down on the number of homeless pets in one Texas city has prompted officials to slap pet owners with a $75 sin tax to help deter their furry friends from breeding. Failure to register your pet’s new litter within 14 days “could result in fines and penalties,” states El Paso’s new animal ordinance.

City officials have also limited dogs and cats to 2 planned or unplanned pregnancies a year in an effort to prevent shelters from being overwhelmed. Professional breeders complain that the city’s crackdown on careless pet owners unfairly punishes their responsible businesses that provide in-demand pets to welcoming new homes.

El Paso Animal Services received $250,000 from the city council to step-up its enforcement efforts that will include monitoring newspapers and other media to ensure citizens selling puppies and kittens have registered their new litters and paid the sin tax for their pets’ intentional or unintentional ‘romantic encounters.’

New York State Assemblyman Felix Ortiz (D-Brooklyn) is on a roll, and we’re only 11 days in to the New Year. Earlier today we reported that he wants to install mandatory breathalyzers in New Yorkers’ automobiles by 2015, and now we get wind that he’s proposing a tax on kids’ rice cakes and video entertainment.

Ortiz has noticed that kids are getting kind of fat, so he’s slapping a wee little tax—one quarter of one percent—on sales of all the foods listed as sweets or snacks in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, plus a tax on sale and rentals of video games and movies and game controllers. (A faint silver lining: Reading this bill taught me what DVD stands for. Digital Versatile Disk, apparently. Who knew?) That money goes to an “Childhood Obesity Prevention Program Fund.” But the tax fails to distinguish between good and bad snack, and good and bad video games. So in the name of obesity prevention, education games will get hit, as will these USDA-listed snacks …

Here’s another blooper from Ortiz’ proposed ‘anti-obesity’ tax: Kids and adults intent on purchasing Nintendo’s Wii ‘Fit’ games would be penalized with a sin tax. According to People magazine, First Lady Michelle Obama encourages her two girls to engage in Wii’s virtual physical fitness games on a regular basis.

Got some advice for Ortiz before his next attempt to legislate the behaviors and eating habits of New Yorkers both young and old? Contact his office.

Pepsi is moving out of Baltimore due to the city's burdensome soda tax.

Nanny state bureaucrats in Baltimore, Md., are responsible for adding another 75 of the struggling city’s workers to the unemployment ranks, courtesy of their war against obesity. Pepsi-Cola announced it will no longer produce soda in ‘Charm City’ as a result of the recently passed two cent per container soda tax.

“In the case of Baltimore, as you may know, there was a beverage tax that was passed here and in this case, it did not help in the decision in terms of keeping the Baltimore plant open,” said Pepsi spokesperson Mark Dollins.

Baltimore grocers also report that the soda tax has had an adverse affect on their bottom lines as shoppers are traveling outside of city limits to purchase sugar-sweetened beverages.

“I’m just shocked that [Pepsi’s] pulling out and I asked them if there was anything we could do at the city level with Baltimore Development Corporation and try to offer some kind of incentive and they said it was too far down the line,” said City Council President Jack Young.

This is what happens, Jack, when big government over-regulates and over-burdens private businesses, both large and small, with needless taxes that eliminate any economic incentives keeping them in your city versus somewhere else with fiscally responsible leaders who would be more than happy to make ample accommodations that might help shrink their unemployment rosters and boost their economies in these difficult times.

Living south of a well-traveled bridge in one Mass. suburb could now mean the difference between life and death for local residents. State officials recently revised weight restrictions for “heavy trucks” crossing Haverhill’s Basiliere Bridge to include critical ladder trucks.

“It’s not ideal and we want it fixed as quickly as possible, but it’s not a source for panic,” a complicit Mayor James Fiorentini told the Eagle-Tribune. “The state has told us the restriction applies to the firetrucks. We’ve asked them to consider allowing the ladder trucks to use the bridge and they said they will get back to us. If the answer is still no, we’ve asked them to fix the bridge as quickly as possible.”

Ain’t that sweet? Mayor Fiorentini would rather allow the ‘bureaucratic process’ to run its course than do whatever it takes as quickly as possible to protect local residents whose homes and lives are at stake.

Here’s the kicker: Since the weight restrictions were enacted, no city agency has ever monitored the bridge for “heavy trucks” exceeding the posted limit, says the city’s Public Safety Committee chairman. Admittedly, the only truckers following the ill-conceived law are Haverhill firemen who are being forced to take the long route with their ladder trucks!

Michelle Malkin just released her “Big Nannies of the Year” list and Reason.tv recently held its annual red carpet ‘awards gala.’ Find out who made the cut and let us know if a notorious nanny state nincompoop has been overlooked.

From Macon.com: “Showing her Georgia Power bills in the one warm room of her home, Raymeica Kelly explains how her mother, sister and herself were turned away from the Energy Assistance Program on Wednesday morning after standing in line for four hours. All three complained that the system the Macon-Bibb County Economic Opportunity Council uses to give out the assistance needs improving.”

That's a really nice and big HDTV you have, Raymeica! Looks like you have XBox 360, too. Explain to us, again, why taxpayers need to pay your bills, especially since you're gainfully employed again? Raymeica's on Facebook, too. Read her recent comments (below) to those who don't understand her 'needs.' What's wrong with this picture?

“Kelley said she was unemployed for a year before recently landing a job. But her bills have stacked up while she was unemployed, and she needs the assistance.”

Raymeica wrote on her Facebook page, “I cant blieve how people hate to help others in their time of need! hope u never need help…im sure u will…keep livin ‘REAL-TALK.'” She adds, “I do work and have always worked ,never been on welfare, and if you need help why not ask for it I have worked and paid my taxes just like any other citizen. THANK YOU!!!! then on top of that, HOW DO ANYBODY KNOW IF I WAS EVEN AT Y OWN HOUSE? SO STOP ACTING LIKE YU TOO PROUD TO BEG!!! SEE YOU LATER IN LINE PIMPS AND PIMPETTES!!!!”

Well, Raymeica … we know the picture was taken at your house because the photo caption says you’re standing in “one warm room of [your] home.”